Small weapons calibres

Ammunition shell cases, with pierced primers, are safe. These cases should be empty and are missing the bullet itself. During (heavy) combat soldiers will loose some equipment - among them live ammunition. The difference:

Three live ammo rounds: a Lee Enfield round - complete bullet including casing; a German K98 round: primer has no pierced dot in the centre; and a clip of three Lee Enfield rounds.

Compared to the safe casings below: to the left three casings (without bullet tip) all with pierced primers. Casing markings can define most: left has a elongated primer piercing dot from a Bren gun. The right has post war markings with pierced primer, the lower has ww2 German markings with pireced primer.

The photograph to the right has all safe casings without the bullet tips. All primers were also pierced. Notice the three centre casing with 'pierced' bullet tips: these are used and safe blanks. Do not mistake: blanks with unpierced primers and complete tips are dangerous too!

Handgrenades, Tank-/ Artillery- and Mortar rounds

Now these are a different story; much more easier to recognize but also much more dangerous. It is very easy: this ammunition can be found in enormous amounts of pieces of shrapnel. These are safe. When you come across something much more bigger and heavy, in these area's generally be concerned about finding a live grenade or round.

Some examples of shrapnel can be seen beneath: to the left pieces of driving bands (with the markings) and to the right pieces of fuzes. Overall it is very simple: each artillery shell consists of three kinds of material: explosive composition which tears appart the shell into shrapnel. Explosive material can not be found once it was set off. Only in live ammo. The second piece is the iron body, which falls apart into many parts of lethal shrapnell after the explosion. Many heavily rusted iron pieces will be found in artillery targetted areas. The third piece pf material consists of shell technology: drivings bands to rotate the shell, fuzes, primers and time mechanisms to controll the exlosion - these third kind of materials always consists of precious metals amd these will not contain any rust as can be seen below.

And some obvious examples of live ammo - either found already exposed, partly unearthed or dug up by accident (all reported to Police/ EOD): 

Do not mess around with these live rounds. Artillery rounds and tank rounds are always armed. Even though much is corroded the explosive material could be instable if the round is anywhere damaged. Moving them, hitting or cutting them could definitely make them explode. The same goes for the handgrenades and mortar rounds.

Other explosive igniters

Sometimes you come across ammunition equipment that's not directly identifiable as bullets, grenades or shells. But if it feels somehow heavy and looks like capsules, always be aware. These could be explosives - or igniters which stil are very dangerous when set off. Examples:  

Now these are a special kind of igniter. Two of these were used for a French light anti-tank mine. Manufactured before ww2 these could be used during the 1940 battles on Dutch soil (by the Dutch or French) but were also used by German troops during the entire war. On the drawing on the left it can be seen that there is an explosive igniter at the long end - which are intact on the most left photograph. These are unsafe - if triggered somehow these could definitely maim or kill you.